June 2014

PE REPORT
Are Engineers CEO Material?

URSULA BURNS WAS NAMED CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF XEROX CORP. IN JULY 2009. SHE HOLDS BACHELOR’S AND MASTER’S DEGREES IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERING.
PHOTOGRAPH BY KRISTA KENNELL/FORTUNE MOST POWERFUL WOMEN SUMMIT CREATIVE COMMONS: CREATIVECOMMONS.ORG/LICENSES/BY-ND/2.0/LEGALCODE

Do engineers have what it takes to serve as heads of the nation’s leading companies? Nearly 70% of engineers said they believe that their engineering skills provide a strong base to serve as a successful CEO, according to an American Society for Quality survey. Yet only 9% of nonengineering workers said that engineers would make the best CEOs. Engineers trailed professionals in operations (23%), finance (17%), marketing (14%), academia (13%), and sales (11%).

What traits are associated with a great leader? Honesty is the trait that 30% of employees said they value the most, while 22% point to communication skills. Critical thinking (11%) and commitment (10%) were also cited as critical leadership qualities.

According to the engineering participants, 61% are currently in a management or leadership role. Nearly 75% of them supervise up to nine employees while 14% supervise 10–19 employees. ASQ CEO Paul Borawski attributes the success of engineers in these management and leadership roles to their ability to diversify their skill sets through a variety of training and professional development opportunities.

Of the 39% of engineers surveyed who are not currently serving in leadership positions, 16% have a high interest in attaining a leadership role while 20% of this group are not interested in serving in a top leadership position. Seventeen percent of the engineers surveyed don’t believe that they have the skills to be a successful CEO because they say that leaders need skills above and beyond analytical skills.

The survey also gave participants the opportunity to cite why they think engineers can be great CEOs:

• “Problem solving is at the root of engineering. That is at the foundation of what a CEO does.”

• “Engineering skills include analytical thinking and problem solving, which are essential for being in a leadership position.”

• “Strong engineering skills allow a CEO to make wiser decisions.”

• “Engineers are more organized and logical thinkers. They reason through the consequences of a decision before making a commitment.”

The ASQ leadership survey was conducted among 1,027 nationally representative Americans ages 18 and older. The poll of engineers was conducted among ASQ members who identifed themselves as engineers.